Gen. Petraeus: Politicians ‘Toy With Anti-Muslim Bigotry’

Former CIA director General David Petraeus shared a message for the American people about what not to do in the fight against Islamic extremists.

At the top of the list—alienating Muslims.

Citing the importance of the upcoming election, Petraeus exposed how some who seek to be elected are actually making it more difficult to fight Islamic extremists like ISIS and al-Qaeda. While not addressing the Republican party by name, Petraeus had strong words for those who propose blanket discrimination of whole groups of people based on their religion under the guise of keeping America safe.

“As policy, these concepts are totally counterproductive: Rather than making our country safer, they will compound the already grave terrorist danger to our citizens. As ideas, they are toxic and, indeed, non-biodegradable — a kind of poison that, once released into our body politic, is not easily expunged.”

Petraeus outlined three key reasons the current rhetoric here and abroad hurts our efforts to thwart terrorism from Islamic extremists.

1. It plays into the hands of extremists. Claims to be at war with Islam, radical or otherwise, give the extremist groups a rallying point they can use to create and exploit anti-western sentiment they then use for recruiting.

“The terrorists’ explicit hope has been to try to provoke a clash of civilizations — telling Muslims that the United States is at war with them and their religion. When Western politicians propose blanket discrimination against Islam, they bolster the terrorists’ propaganda.”

2. It alienates the people who can best help us defeat extremist groups–other Muslims. The people most impacted by extremist groups are the Muslims who live in the areas the terrorists take over. Securing the trust of the vast majority of Muslims who do not support or believe as the extremists do, is key to defeating groups like ISIS and al-Qaeda.

3. It denigrates our fellow citizens who are Muslim. Millions of law abiding, patriotic American citizens follow Islam. They are an integral part of the fight to keep the radical influences at bay here on our homefront.


At no point in the piece does Petraeus diminish the threat that these extremists pose to Americans and our way of life, he merelyl calls for temperance in how we discuss this complex issue.

“But it is precisely because the danger of Islamist extremism is so great that politicians here and abroad who toy with anti-Muslim bigotry must consider the effects of their rhetoric. Demonizing a religious faith and its adherents not only runs contrary to our most cherished and fundamental values as a country; it is also corrosive to our vital national security interests and, ultimately, to the United States’ success in this war.”

Will the people who need to hear this most listen?


Featured image by US Army, available under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 license.